Basement apartments to be legal across city

Basement apartments may be allowed in houses across Peterborough - no rezoning necessary – if council adopts new rules to be proposed by city staff by the end of the winter.

Right now, basement apartments are only legal in the downtown. Anywhere else in the city, they’re not allowed – unless the property owner applies for a rezoning, and council grants it.

But that could be changing, soon. At a public meeting Wednesday night at Queen Elizabeth Public School, city planning staff presented a new set of rules they’re developing.

Subdivision planner Brad Appleby told 20 people who’d gathered at the meeting that city council will soon be asked to make these secondary apartments legal across the city – not just in the downtown.

The only requirement of property owners would be to register the apartment at City Hall; that would allow the city to send inspectors to ensure it’s safe (meeting requirements set out in the Fire Code and Building Code).

There would be a one-time registration fee; renewals wouldn’t be required.

The type of apartment Appleby is talking about is within a house, with its own private kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. It may or may not have its own entrance.

Appleby said these apartments are popular because the rent helps offset the cost of home ownership, or it allows a family to have an aging relative live with them.

It also boosts the number of affordable apartments, which is critical at a time when the vacancy rate is below one per cent in Peterborough.

Appleby said that the new rules would allow only one apartment per house, and that apartment could have no more than two bedrooms. He said that if the house in question is in the downtown, no extra parking spot would be required for an apartment. Anywhere else in the city, the property owner would need to provide one off-street parking spot.

Apartments in ancilliary buildings in backyards would also be legal under these new rules. Those buildings – sometimes called granny flats - could only be one storey.

At the meeting Wednesday there were realtors, investors, affordable housing advocates and homeowners – some of whom already have a basement apartment and some of whom are considering building one.

Appleby told them he hopes to propose the new rules to city councillors by the end of this winter.

In the meantime, there’s opportunity to learn more and to offer feedback to city staff.

There’s another public meeting on the matter Thursday at Kenner Collegiate on Monaghan Rd. from 7 to 9 p.m.

NOTE: To provide feedback, contact Brad Appleby at bappleby@peterborough.ca.